Highland Girls Walk Away From Roll-Over Accident in Canyon
October 20, 2015
Two Highland students walked away with minimal injuries after a traumatic roll-over-crash down Little Cottonwood Canyon.
Jasmine Miner and Olivia Romney were driving back from Oktoberfest on Saturday, September 26th. They were merging from a 2-lane to a 1-lane road, when a car suddenly sped in front of them and Miner swerved out of the way to avoid a collision. Trying to gain control again, the car fishtailed for a moment and suddenly struck the bank on the mountainside. The car rolled across the road and stopped upside-down, right before the other bank leading off the cliff.
“I don’t want to die was the only thought going through my head while we were rolling,” Romney said. “I definitely thought we were about to.”
Shockingly, the cars’ airbags did not go off, leaving only the girls’ seatbelts there to protect them. The police officers were positive that if they did not have seatbelts on, both girls would not have made it.
After the car stopped rolling, both girls were trapped and could not move. Romney asked Miner if she was okay and she responded with “Yes, I’m just bleeding a little.”
Both girls began panicking and yelling for help for about 10 seconds until some people drove up on the scene. Strangers immediately got out of their cars and rushed over to try to help the girls. Romney was able to be pulled out through her shattered window. Miner was still trapped inside by her hair, which was stuck beneath the car. Once Romney was out she realized there was blood along the road where Miner’s face had slid against the asphalt.
The paramedics showed up 20 minutes after the accident and had to cut Miner’s hair to get her out from the car.
“Does my hair look bad?” Was the first thing Miner said once they got her out.
She was taken and admitted to the hospital for follow-up observation, and released the next day with no significant injuries, except for her “embarrassing” haircut, according to Miner.
Both girls are still quite shaken up and experiencing small doses of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from the event.
Romney sometimes experiences frightening flashbacks when she is riding in a car or while playing tennis when tennis balls come toward her.
“I’m just grateful we didn’t die,” Romney said. “I am a lot more appreciative for life now that something that scary has happened to me.”
Miner on the other hand is doing a lot better than expected. She came back to school one week after being released. She says that she is ready to put this incident behind her and move on with her life.
“I’m just glad to be alive,” Miner said. “I’m just embarrassed by my hair.”
Both girls know how crucial seatbelts are after this terrifying experience, and realize the outcome of their accident could have been much worse.